Thunderbound
by SkyraTwilight812
Summary: When Lucas, Kumatora, and Duster die in an accident involving a high-power car and Kuma's terrible driving, they are reborn as ThunderClan kits, along with an unexpected friend. But even if the Dark Forest isn't a threat anymore, the clans are in more danger than ever before. (Rated T for some violence, contains DusterxKuma)
1. Allegiances

Alliances:

**ThunderClan:**

**Leader:** Bramblestar- Dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

**Deputy:** Brackenfur- Golden brown tabby tom

Apprentice, Dewpaw

**Medicine Cat:** Jayfeather- Gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes

Apprentice, Lilypaw

**Warriors:**

Graystripe- Long-haired gray tom with yellow eyes

Cloudtail- Long-haired white tom with blue eyes

Brightheart- White she-cat with ginger patches

Millie- Striped gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Thornclaw- Golden brown tabby tom

Apprentice, Amberpaw

Crowfeather- Sleek smoky gray tom, formerly of WindClan

Sorreltail- Tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

Squirrelflight- Dark ginger she-cat with green eyes

Spiderleg- Long-limbed black tom with a brown underbelly and amber eyes

Birchfall- Light brown tabby tom

Whitewing- White she-cat with green eyes

Apprentice, Snowpaw

Berrynose- Cream-colored tom

Mousewhisker- Gray and white tom

Hazeltail- Small gray and white she-cat

Lionblaze- Gold tabby tom with amber eyes

Foxleap- Reddish tabby tom

Icecloud- White she-cat

Apprentice, Seedpaw

Rosepetal- Lithe dark cream she-cat

Toadstep- Black and white tom

Blossomfall- Tortoiseshell and white she-cat

Bumblestripe- Very pale gray tom with black stripes

Dovewing- Pale gray she-cat with blue eyes

Ivypool- Silver and white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes

Cherryfeather- Fluffy ginger she-cat with amber eyes

Moleclaw- Large cream and brown tom with amber eyes

**Apprentices:**

Seedpaw- Very pale ginger she-cat

Lilypaw- Dark tabby she-cat with white patches

Amberpaw- Pale gray she-cat with amber eyes

Dewpaw- Gray tom with amber eyes

Snowpaw- White tom with amber eyes

**Queens:**

Briarlight- Dark brown she-cat, mother of Dustkit (Brown tom)

Cinderheart- Gray tabby she-cat, Mother of Lionblaze's kit, Fierykit (Fiery ginger she-kit)

Leafpool- Light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes, former medicine cat, mother of Crowfeather's kits, Flashkit (Golden tabby tom) and Maskkit (Ginger tom with a gray face)

**Elders:**

Sandstorm-Pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

Purdy- Plump tabby with a gray muzzle, former loner

**ShadowClan:**

**Leader:** Rowanstar- Dark ginger tom

**Deputy: **Applefur- Mottled brown she-cat

**Medicine Cat: **Littlecloud- Very small tabby tom

Apprentice, Dawnpaw

**Warriors:**

Oakfur- Small brown tom

Smokefoot- Black tom

Toadfoot- Dark brown tom

Crowfrost- Black and white tom

Ratscar- Brown tom with a long scar across his back

Apprentice, Stoatpaw

Snowbird- Pure white she-cat

Olivenose- Tortoiseshell she-cat

Owlclaw- Light brown tabby tom

Shrewfoot- Gray she-cat with black feet

Scorchfur- Dark gray tom

Apprentice, Adderpaw

Tigerheart- dark brown tabby tom

Ferretclaw- Cream and gray tom

Starlingwing- Ginger tom

**Apprentices:**

Stoatpaw- Skinny ginger tom

Adderpaw- Ginger tabby tom

Dawnpaw- Cream colored she-cat

**Queens:**

Pinenose- Black she-cat, mother of Scorchfur's kit, Shadekit (Dark gray tom)

Kinkfur- Tabby she-cat, with long fur that sticks out at all angles

Ivytail- Black, white and tortoiseshell she-cat

**Elders: **

Cedarheart- dark gray tom

Snaketail- Dark brown tom with a tabby-striped tail

Whitewater- White she-cat with long fur, blind in one eye

**WindClan:**

**Leader:** Onestar- Brown tabby tom

**Deputy:** Ashfoot- Gray she-cat with clear blue eyes

**Medicine Cat:** Kerstrelflight- Mottled gray tom

**Warriors:**

Owlwhisker- Light brown tabby tom

Whiskernose- Light brown tom

Whitetail- Small white she-cat

Nightcloud- Black she-cat

Gorsetail- Very pale gray and white she-cat

Weaselfur- Ginger tom with white paws

Harespring- Brown and white tom

Leaftail- Dark tabby tom with amber eyes

Apprentice, Swiftpaw

Emberfoot- Gray tom with two dark paws

Heathertail- Light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Sedgewhisker- Light brown tabby she-cat

Swallowtail- Dark gray she-cat

Sunstrike- Tortoiseshell she-cat with a large white mark on her forehead

**Apprentices:**

Swiftpaw- Silver tabby tom

**Elders:**

Webfoot- Dark gray tabby tom

**RiverClan:**

**Leader:** Mistystar- Gray she-cat with blue eyes

**Deputy: **Reedwhisker- Black tom

**Medicine Cat:** Mothwing- Dappled golden she-cat

Apprentice, Willowshine

**Warriors:**

Graymist- Pale gray tabby she-cat

Mintfur- Light gray tabby tom

Icewing- White she-cat with blue eyes

Minnowtail- Dark gray she-cat

Pebblefoot- Mottled gray tom

Rushtail- Light brown tabby she-cat

Mallownose- light brown tabby tom

Robinwing- Tortoiseshell and white tom

Petalfur- Gray and white she-cat

Grasspelt- light brown tom

Mossyfoot- Brown and white she-cat

Troutstream- Pale gray tabby she-cat

**Queens:**

Mosspelt- Tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes, mother of Mintfur's kits, Duckkit (Fluffy tortoiseshell tom) and Tumblekit (Light gray tom)

Duskfur- Brown tabby she-cat

**Elders:**

Dapplenose- Mottled gray she-cat

**As you may have noticed, I have made a few changes. A few warriors and elders are gone, because a few cats will have died over the eight moons that have passed since "The Last Hope". Also, you can see that Crowfeather is now in ThunderClan. Two moons before this story begins, he got fed up with suspicious WindClan cats accusing him of murdering Breezepelt, and went to join ThunderClan. (And Leafpool, yay!) As an alternate story, I decided the Erins had tortured Leafpool enough for me to give her at least a small break. Oh, and one more thing. I have fixed a couple mistakes that were in the allegiances of The Last Hope, including the fact that Antpelt is still listed, despite being totally, absolutely, and completely dead, and a couple warriors somehow reverted to apprentices.**

**EDIT: I changed Dustkit's description a little, his leg injury hasn't followed him to the warriors world YET. It will happen sometime, though ;) And I forgot to mention something. The reason Squirrelflight isn't deputy is because she DID have kits with Bramblestar. unfortunately, the two she-kits, Frostkit and Nightkit, died during the same bought of greencough that killed Dustpelt (Who was already an elder at the time)**


	2. Prologue, and a Sneek Peek of Chap 1

**Prologue- The Accident**

_There were cats all around him, fighting, clawing, screeching… He covered his ears trying to block it out, but the noises of the battle still raged outside. Now, among the cat's terrified yowls, he could hear the voices of his friends, screaming for help… He knew he had to do something, but he couldn't move…. All he could do was hide his face and wait for it to end… Then, a huge dark tabby jumped out, clawing him, biting him…_

Lucas woke up with a start. He had been having the same nightmare over and over, to the point where he was afraid to sleep. He got out of bed, blinking in the sunlight that filtered through his windows, got dressed, and went downstairs. He was about to have breakfast when he saw a note on the door

_Hey, Lucas! I have something awesome to show you, so come to Oshoe Castle tomorrow at 8:00!_

_Sincerely, Kumatora._

_P.S. If you don't show up, expect several PK Starstorms headed your way._

He looked at his watch, and, seeing as it was already 8:15, rushed out of the house and towards Oshoe Castle as quickly as he could. When he got there, Kumatora and Duster were both waiting for him.

"You're late!" snapped Kumatora.

"Sorry" said Lucas, "I overslept. But what was it you wanted to show us?"

Kumatora walked over to a large object covered in a gray sheet, and pulled off the cover.

Duster gasped "Are you sure that's a good idea, Kumatora? Remember what happened the last time you drove one of those?"

"Yeah, yeah." said Kumatora, waving her hand dismissively, "I've had driving lessons since the last time."

"But where did you even get that?" said Lucas.

"Uhh… Found it." said Kumatora.

"Where?" asked Duster, apprehensively

"…On a street…" said Kumatora, "…At one of the Pigmask's training facilities or whatever they do there now that they don't have a leader."

"Why would the Pigmasks even have a car?" wondered Lucas, "Don't they already have vehicles like the Pork Bean?"

"Dunno" said Kumatora, shrugging, "But I wanna try driving it!"

"I'm still not sure this is a good idea…" said Duster, climbing into the car.

"I agree with Duster" said Lucas, "Maybe I should stay here in case something bad happens?"

"Nothing bad is going to happen" said Kumatora, "Now get in the car."

Lucas wasn't a master at reading Kumatora's expressions, but the look on her face clearly said "And if you don't, I'm going to kill you"

"Okay, if you say so" said Lucas.

"Just so you know" said Duster, "If we die, it's your fault."

"We're not going to die, you moron!" said Kumatora, "Now how do you start the engine on one of these things, anyways?"

"Um, if you took driving lessons, shouldn't you know how to start the car?" asked Lucas.

"Of course I know how to start it!" said Kumatora. "See? I know how it works!" she exclaimed as the engine started. She put her foot on the gas pedal, and the car shot off like a rocket.

Duster was clinging to his seat, yelping "Rock! Sheep! Building!" as Kumatora dodged them.

"I have eyes, you know!" shouted Kumatora over the wind.

"EYES ON THE ROAD!" shouted Duster, ignoring her completely.

"Alright, alright!" said Kumatora, "anyone would think we were about to smash into-"

She was cut off as Duster shouted "OSHOE CASTLE!"

Kuma looked back towards the road, and her eyes widened as she realized where the car was heading. "Hang on to your seats!" she shouted, "I think it's about to get bumpy!"

The car smashed through one of the walls, flipped over five times, and was crushed on the ground.

**Chapter 1**

Everything was dark. He couldn't see anything, but he could feel warm, fuzzy shapes near him, and he was laying on something soft. Lucas had no idea how long it lasted, but eventually the nothingness was broken by something prodding his side with a fuzzy paw.

"C'mon, Flashkit, wake up!" said a small voice.

Lucas slowly forced his eyes open. He was in a small clearing made of brambles that had been woven together. There was moss all over the floor. _"That must have been what was so soft"_ he thought to himself. Then, he noticed all the cats. He was sitting near to a pale brown tabby, and standing next to him was a small ginger tom with a round, gray, fluffy face.

"Great!" he said, "You've opened your eyes! That means we can play now!"

"Now, Maskkit." said the tabby, "Your brother's only just opened his eyes. Let him have a minute to figure everything out."

The kitten, whose name was apparently Maskkit, sighed and said "Okay, Leafpool. But after that, can we go out?"

"Of course, Maskkit." Said the tabby, "You can go and play with your brother soon, but not a moment before he's ready."

_"Wait. I have a brother?"_ wondered Lucas,_ "Could it be?"_

**So here's the prologue and a sneak peek at Chapter 1. OH WOW, WONDER WHO MASKKIT IS? (Yeah... if you've played through Mother 3, you probably know who it is. And if you haven't played through or spoiled it for yourself like I did, GET OUT THERE ARE SPOILERS HERE!) Not sure when I'll post more chapters, but hopefully it will happen soon.**


	3. Chapter 1

**Since I forgot to do this before, I'll say it now. I don't own warriors or Mother 3 or anything but the plot. **

Everything was dark. He couldn't see anything, but he could feel warm, fuzzy shapes near him, and he was laying on something soft. Lucas had no idea how long it lasted, but eventually the nothingness was broken by something prodding his side with a fuzzy paw.

"C'mon, Flashkit, wake up!" said a small voice.

Lucas slowly forced his eyes open. He was in a small clearing made of brambles that had been woven together. There was moss all over the floor. _"That must have been what was so soft"_ he thought to himself. Then, he noticed all the cats. He was sitting near to a pale brown tabby, and standing next to him was a small ginger tom with a round, gray, fluffy face.

"Great!" he said, "You've opened your eyes! That means we can play now!"

"Now, Maskkit." said the tabby, "Your brother's only just opened his eyes. Let him have a minute to figure everything out."

The kitten, whose name was apparently Maskkit, sighed and said "Okay, Leafpool. But after that, can we go out?"

"Of course, Maskkit." Said the tabby, "You can go and play with your brother soon, but not a moment before he's ready."

_"Wait. I have a brother?"_ wondered Lucas,_ "Could it be?" _He tried to stand up, but found that instead of two feet he was standing on four paws. He started to ask Maskkit if he knew anything about PSI or the Seven Needles or anything else from his world, but was cut off.

"Don't say anything about our world." Maskkit hissed in his ear, "Just play along and act like you have the brain of a three-year old."

Lucas nodded his head. He didn't really understand what was going on, but he did know that he probably wasn't going to get an explanation out of Maskkit without telling Leafpool he was ready to go outside. Turning to the pale-brown tabby, he asked "Leafpool, I'm ready to go outside. Can Maskkit and I go play?"

"Okay" said Leafpool, "Just don't get into trouble.

Suddenly, something that Lucas had previously dismissed as a pile of moss moved and lifted its head. "Kits? Get into trouble?" the dark brown cat asked, "Leafpool, you and I both know that sooner or later they'll get into some kind of trouble."

"I know, Briarlight," sighed Leafpool, "But hopefully they won't get into too much on their first time out of the nursery."

"Where's Cinderheart?" asked Briarlight.

Leafpool shrugged. "Last I saw, she was watching Fierykit and Dustkit. They certainly get into everything, especially Fierykit."

"Well, what would you expect?" asked Briarlight, "With who her father is, I'm surprised she hasn't tried to sneak off and lead a raid on WindClan's camp yet!"

"They'll be gossiping for hours." whispered Maskkit, "We should just go now."

He turned and padded out of the nursery, motioning with his tail for Lucas to follow him. Blinking in the sunlight, Lucas saw he was in what seemed to be some sort of abandoned quarry, with cats all over. It probably wasn't too impressive to humans, but Lucas was just a tiny kitten. The walls of the quarry seemed so tall, and even the cats seemed like giants compared to him. He probably would have stood there gaping at the sheer size of everything, but Maskkit tapped him on the shoulder with his paw. "Follow me." he said, "I'll explain everything."

Instead of heading for one of the larger dens, to Lucas's surprise, Maskkit headed for a small opening next to a den under a big thorn bush that had been reinforced with several branches. Not sure of what else to do, Lucas followed him. Inside of the hole, two other kittens were waiting for them. One was a brown tom with blue eyes, and the other was a rather fierce looking ginger she-kit with violet eyes.

"Well look who finally decided to open his eyes." Said the ginger she-kit.

"Shut up" said Maskkit, "He doesn't even know what's going on yet!"

"Could someone please tell me what in the world is going on here?" asked Lucas.

"Sorry" said Maskkit, "I wanted to tell you earlier, but Kumatora said we should explain together."

"Kumatora?" exclaimed Lucas, "Where?"

"Right here, dummy!" said the ginger she-kit, "And in case you can't figure it out, the buffoon sitting next to me is Duster."

"Then who's Maskkit?" asked Lucas.

"Well, DUH!" said Kuma, "Can't you recognize your own brother?"

"WHAT?!" shouted Lucas with surprise, "B-b-but- you- you- is it really you?"

"Yes" said Claus/Maskkit, "I don't really know how we got here, but somehow we got turned into cats."

"But why were they calling you Maskkit? And who're Dustkit and Fierykit? And why did you call me Flashkit?"

"One thing at a time please!" said Kumatora, "I'm Fierykit, and Duster is, well, Dustkit. And about the names, well, the cats around here call themselves a "clan" or something like that. They have this whole "warrior code" and everything, and names seem very important to them."

"This is a bit complicated." Warned Claus/Maskkit, "So when a cat is born, their name ends in -kit, like our names. Then, when they turn six moons old, the –kit changes to –paw, and they begin doing things like hunting and training for battles. When they finish their training, they receive their "warrior name", which can end in one of many different things, like Squirrelflight, Sandstorm, Graystripe, Jayfeather, or something else. If we're going to stay here, we'll have to get used to new names."

"So, I have to go by "Flashkit" from now on?" asked Lucas.

"Well, at least until you become an apprentice, yes." Said Maskkit/Claus. "And just so the other cats don't get confused, we should probably start using our cat-names with each other."

"Yeah, yeah, blah blah blah." Said Fierykit, "Anyways, do you two wanna know what the camp looks like, or do you wanna sit here yakking about names?"

"Well, if we're going to stay here, we may as well learn the layout of the camp." said Maskkit, "Would you mind showing it to us?"

"Well, if you insist." said Fierykit, obviously proud of her knowledge.

"You do remember that I had to show you around the camp when you first got here." grumbled Dustkit.

Unfazed, Fierykit led the twins outside. Pointing to the thorn bush with her tail, she said "This is where the warriors sleep. It was apparently crushed by a tree at one point, but they rebuilt it soon after." Turning to a couple caves in the wall of the quarry, she said "This is the apprentice's den. Dustkit and I will be moving there in a couple moons. The cave next t it is the medicine cat's den. The medicine cat, Jayfeather, and his apprentice, Lilypaw, sleep there and store the herbs they use to heal sick and injured cats there. Motioning to a den made out of sticks and honeysuckle, she said "This is the elder's den. It was destroyed by the tree, also, but they rebuilt it too. And see that cave at the top of those rocks?" she added, "That's where the leader, Bramblestar sleeps. The big pointy rock in the middle of the camp is Highledge, where Bramblestar makes announcements and stuff like that."

"So is there anything outside of the camp?" asked Flashkit, "I mean, the warriors have to go somewhere to hunt, right?"

Fierykit shrugged. "Yeah, but we're not really allowed to go out of the camp until we're apprentices."

Flashkit yawned. "The sun's going down, and I'm getting tired. Let's head back to the nursery."

As the four kits headed in for the night, Flashkit couldn't help but notice a certain gleam in Fierykit's eyes. He had seen that look many times before, one of which was just before she got into the car who knows how long ago. She was planning something, but for now all Flashkit wanted was to get to bed.

**Okay, before I say anything else, I have to thank "Earthbound Cat" and "Blazey" for their reviews. If you hadn't posted them, this chapter would not exist. The more reviews I get, the more motivated I feel. On a fairly unrelated topic, there WILL be some DusterxKumatora, but it will be hidden under a lot of Dustkit being used as Fierykit's scratching post. Also, even though I'm very far from it being necessary, I would like a little help with warrior names for Maskkit, Flashkit, Fierykit, and Dustkit. I can easily give a nice name to any other cat, but these names have to be special, and I'm feeling a little stuck on what they should be. Suggestions would be appreciated.**


	4. Chapter 2

**Me: Your turn to do the disclaimer, Kumatora!**

**Kumatora: Aw, come on, can't Duster do it?**

**Me: No. Do the disclaimer.**

**Duster: *snicker***

**Me: Duster, you're doing it next time.**

**Duster: *Grumbles***

**Kumatora: SkyraTwilight812 does NOT own Warriors, and if they owned Mother, There would already be about five sequels and a movie.**

Dustkit blinked in the sunlight. Was it morning already? He had stayed up for a good portion of the night because Fierykit wanted some help with a prank she was playing on Maskkit. It involved putting a rock that was somewhat shaped like his old mask on his head, Fierykit doing her best imitation of Porky, and Dustkit taking all the blame when Leafpool and Briarlight caught them. He yawned, stretched, and started to pad out into the camp, where Maskkit and Flashkit had already started a game of moss-ball.

"Hold it right there, mister!" said Briarlight as Dustkit headed for the entrance. "You're not allowed out of the nursery for the next moon, remember?"

Oh, right.

Laying back down in his nest, Dustkit murmured "Y'know, keeping me in the nursery like this is making it more likely for me to pull another prank."

"Not unless you want another moon in the nursery!" said Briarlight.

Dustkit sighed. This was going to be one long moon.

Suddenly, he heard a small noise behind him. "Psst! Over here!"

Moving towards the sound, he saw Fierykit crouched in a corner, her eyes glittering with excitement. "What is it?", asked Dustkit grouchily, "Is this another prank? If it is, I'm NOT helping you. I don't need to be in any more troubl-"

"Shut up!", hissed Fierykit, "It's not a prank this time!"

"Well, what is it?"

"I found a way to sneak out of the camp!"

"Do Maskkit and Flashkit know?", he asked cautiously.

"They know," said Fierykit, "I told them over an hour ago!"

Dustkit started grumbling again, something about "Well you didn't have to wait that long."

"Shut up, crybaby!", said Fierykit, "Do you even realize how long I've been sitting here trying to get your attention?"

"Y'know, it isn't very easy to hear _anything_ with the queens constantly gossiping."

"Shut up. Are you in, or not?"

Dustkit thought for a moment. He didn't want any trouble, but the idea of sneaking off was just so… tempting. After weighing his options, he made his decision.

"I'm in."

A couple minutes later, Dustkit was sitting near a small hole in the barrier of thorns that protected the camp from invaders.

"So what, exactly, is the plan here?", asked Maskkit, "I don't really feel like rushing off without even knowing what I'm doing or where I'm going. The last time I did that, it didn't turn out so well."

Maskkit and Flashkit shuddered. Dustkit couldn't really say he knew what had happened, but he had a pretty good idea of what they were talking about.

Fierykit, however, remained unfazed. "The plan? Go out, explore the territory, make some mischief, maybe catch a mouse or two, come back, and do our best to hide the fact we were missing for almost an hour."

"That- that's a terrible plan." said Flashkit.

"So what if it is?", asked Fierykit, "Got any better ideas?"

Flashkit opened his mouth to protest, but having nothing good to say, shut it again without making a sound. He clearly wasn't happy, though, as he shot Fierykit a dirty look.

Fierykit ignored him completely, and crawled through the hole. Not really having any other choice, (Seeing as Fierykit would probably kill them if they chickened out now) they followed her through the brambles and out of the camp.

Dustkit knew that everything would seem bigger since he was only the size of a kitten, but he hadn't been prepared for this. Everything just seemed so big. The walls of the quarry rose up behind him, trees that seemed to reach beyond the sky in front. A nearby rock seemed like a mountain, a rabbit hole under a tree seemed like a huge cave.

Fierykit, as usual, ignored everything. "So what should we do first?", she asked, "Chase mice, or try to find those underground tunnels the queens are always gossiping about?"

"Chase mice?" suggested Dustkit, who really didn't want to get lost in underground tunnels right after randomly showing up in a strange place.

Maskkit vigorously nodded his head, and Flashkit shouted "Majority rules! Chase mice!" and ran off before Fierykit had the chance to protest. Maskkit, clearly not wanting to be anywhere near Fierykit at the time, rushed off after his brother as fast as his legs could carry him.

"So," said Fierykit, turning to face Dustkit, "Should we team up? We _will_ be more likely to catch something that way."

"Why not?" said Dustkit, "I'm fine with it." The truth was, he _really, really_ didn't want to get Fierykit angry right then.

They had been hunting for a while now, and had almost succeeded in catching a mouse. (According to Fierykit, a pinecone fell and ruined her concentration, even though there were no pine trees nearby) Dustkit was in the process of attempting to stalk a mouse when he smelled a weird scent.

"Hey Fierykit," he asked, "Do you smell something weird?"

"Yeah," said Fierykit, not actually paying any attention, "Your breath."

"No, I don't think it's that.", said Dustkit, who was trying his best not to try and strangle his friend, "I think I smelled it before."

"On your fur?" asked Fierykit, still not caring to pay any attention.

"No. Do you remember the time Toadstep and Rosepetal were ambushed by a fox?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"I remember smelling something like this on them when they limped into camp."

Fierykit started to insult him yet again, but was interrupted when a ginger, fuzzy creature jumped out of the bushes. "How's it going?" yowled Maskkit cheerily.

Flashkit crawled out of a patch of brambles next to where Maskkit had been hiding, moaning "I'm never taking shortcuts again. Never."

"Dustkit thinks he smells something weird.", said Fierykit, "I say it's his breath."

"I swear there's a fox around here!", said Dustkit, "We really need to get back to camp before the queens realize we're missing."

"Aw, come on!", said Fierykit, "They're probably too busy gossiping. We still have _hours_ left."

"Wait," said Maskkit, "I smell something too."

"So do I," said Flashkit, "Maybe Dustkit is right."

"You guys are all wimps.", said Fierykit, "Do whatever you like, I'm going to do some more hunting." With that, she walked away through the brambles and out of sight.

"So," said Flashkit, "Should we go home?"

"I don't think so," said Dustkit, "If there really is a fox around here, Fierykit could be in danger."

Almost before Dustkit could finish his sentence, they heard someone scream.

"Something tells me," said Maskkit, "That Fierykit just found the fox."

Dustkit was feeling panicky. He didn't know why, he and his friends had been in dangerous situations too many times to count. But this time, they didn't have any of their former skills. Is that why he felt this way? He had to act quickly. Though Fierykit was tough, she wouldn't last long against a fox.

"You two should go back to camp to get help," he said, turning to his friends, "I'll go and try to help Fierykit."

"Are you sure about that?", asked Maskkit, "Remember, you can't use any of your Thief Arts here."

"Look," said Dustkit, "Fierykit can't last long on her own. I'm pretty fast, I can distract it until backup arrives."

"If you think so,", said Flashkit, "But be careful."

Dustkit nodded his head, and rushed off in the direction Fierykit had headed.

_"Wow,"_ thought Dustkit, _"Fierykit sure can move!"_

He had been on her trail for a few minutes now, and it was surprising how fast she had been able to move in a matter of seconds. He heard another scream, this time much closer. He burst out of the bushes, and was met with a sight that filled him with more fear than he had ever thought possible. Fierykit had been cornered by the fox, which was, from Dustkit's point of view amazingly huge. She was swiping at its muzzle whenever it tried to get close to her, but the fox was clearly getting bolder, and Fierykit was starting to look tired.

"Hey, dirt breath!" The words seemed to jump out of Dustkit's mouth. "Over here! You stink!"

The fox turned in his direction, snarling. Its face was scarier-looking than any fox _he_ had seen before. Of course, the other times he had been a human at least ten times its size, and he had been able to use the Thief Arts.

The fox leapt at him, still snarling. Dustkit jumped out of the way, but only just in time.

_"This thing is faster than I thought!"_ thought Dustkit.

He ran around the clearing in an attempt to keep ahead of the fox until Maskkit and Flashkit managed to get help. The fox's teeth snapped together just behind him, in an effort to grab his tail. No matter what Dustkit did, he was only able to evade the fox just barely. He felt the fox's hot breath on his leg, and heard the sound of its jaws clamping together yet again. White-hot pain shot through his leg.

_"It's got me!"_ he thought.

He slashed at the fox's muzzle in an attempt to escape, but it wouldn't let go.

_"Oh please let the warriors get here soon!" _

His vision was starting to go dark. He could faintly hear Fierykit shouting in the background, but her voice was strangely muffled, as if she was far away.

_"I hope at least she can get away."_

Suddenly, a loud yowling pierced his ears, and he saw Lionblaze, Brackenfur, and Bumblestripe burst through the bracken. Then, his vision faded and everything went black.

Dustkit blinked his eyes. He was laying on something soft. Was it moss? Everything was fuzzy. Wasn't he being chased by something? He tried to remember what had happened.

"Please don't let me have lost my memory again." He muttered to himself.

He forced himself to try and remember. He had been in the forest, and there was a fox, and Fierykit… Fierykit! Was she alright? He blinked his eyes again. Now everything was a lot less fuzzy, and he could see. He was in some sort of cave that had been made into a den. Tasting the air, he caught the scent of various herbs. Was this the medicine den? He tried to stand up, but pain racked his leg and forced him back down. He groaned. A gray tabby tom padded in from farther into the den, where the Medicine Cat stored his herbs.

_"That must be Jayfeather."_

"Good, you're awake," he said, "I was beginning to think you might not make it."

"W-what happened?" Dustkit asked, "Where's Fierykit?"

He struggled to get up again, but Jayfeather held him down.

"You broke your leg. Do you want to injure your leg even worse? Rest for a bit."

"But where's Fierykit?", he yowled, "Is she alright?"

"She's fine," said Jayfeather, "She pretty shocked, but she somehow escaped without a scratch."

Dustkit relaxed. He realized that until now, he had been holding his breath.

_"Why was I so tense?"_ he wondered.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something moving at the entrance of the den.

"Is Dustkit alright?"

Wait, was that _Fierykit?_

Jayfeather turned towards the entrance. "He's alright. His leg is still broken, but he woke up a couple minutes ago. He wouldn't stop asking if you were alright."

Did Jayfeather really have to tell her _that?_

Fierykit padded over to where Dustkit was resting.

"H-hey." she said.

"What is it?", grumbled Dustkit, "Want me to get in even more trouble with you?"

"N-no.", stammered Fierykit, "I-I came to apologize."

Dustkit was shocked. Fierykit _never_ apologized.

"I'm sorry for what I said back there," she said, "I-I didn't mean it when I called you a wimp. Can you forgive me?"

Dustkit smiled. "Sure."

"Thanks." Padding towards the entrance, Fierykit turned and added, "You were pretty brave back there. That fox was really tough. Bumblestripe had to go back to camp to get reinforcements just to drive it off."

"T-thanks." Now it was Dustkit's turn to stammer. Why was Fierykit being so nice?"

"Oh, and one more thing," she said, "If you ever scare me like that again, I'll kill you."

Dustkit just smiled. Fierykit was back to normal.

**Me: This chapter was so awesome to write. The fox scene gave me a HUGE adrenaline rush. Also, lots of hinting at a certain pairing.**

**Ninten: *cough*Duster*cough*Kumatora*cough***

**Kumatora: TAKE YOUR STUPID ATHSMA AND LEAVE YOU'RE NOT IN THIS STORY**


	5. Chapter 3

**Me: Sorry it's been a while. Pikmin took over my brain. DISCLAIMER!**

**Claus: Do we REALLY need this?**

**Me: Yes. NOW DO IT!**

**Claus: *sigh* SkyraTwilight812 doesn't own warriorsor Earthbound or the characters and yadda yadda yadda. THE END.**

**Kuma: Well said, Claus! NOW ENJOY THE STORY OR DIE!**

Flashkit yawned and stretched. It had been five moons since Dustkit saved Fierykit from the fox. Dustkit was now strong enough to move back to the nursery, but he would always walk with a slight limp.

_"Guess we should have expected something like that to happen,"_ thought Flashkit, _"I mean, he _did_ have a bit of a limp back in our world."_

Fierypaw had moved to the apprentice's den two moons ago, but Dustkit was still in the nursery with Maskkit and Flashkit due to his injury causing him to be stuck in the medicine den until five sunrises ago.

Suddenly, he heard Bramblestar yowling "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath Highledge for a clan meeting!"

Flashkit had to duck to avoid being trampled by Maskkit. "What was that for?"

Maskkit was bouncing up and down. "I'm _sure_ this one will be our apprentice ceremony! Dustkit's out of the medicine den, so it makes perfect sense!"

"Well, if you think so."

He padded out of the nursery, and sat down next to his brother.

"Maskkit and Flashkit!" said Bramblestar, "You have been with us for six moons now. And Dustkit, you should have been made an apprentice by now, and would have if you hadn't chosen to save Fierypaw's life."

Nearby, Flashkit could hear Fierypaw grumbling to Seedpaw, now Seedshine, "Did he really have to mention that? I could've taken that fox on, and five more, too!"

Bramblestar, taking no notice of her, continued on. "It is high time that all of you start your apprenticeships. Dustkit, from this day on until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Dustpaw. Your mentor will be Brightheart. I hope Brightheart passes on all she knows to you."

He turned to Brightheart, whose single eye was glittering with excitement. "Brightheart, it is high time you have an apprentice of your own. You received excellent training from your former mentor, Whitestorm, as well as Cloudtail, and you have shown yourself to be brave and enthusiastic. You will be mentor to Dustpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to him.

Dustpaw padded up to Brightheart, eyes sparkling with excitement, and touched noses with her.

Bramblestar continued on. "Maskkit, from this day on until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Maskpaw. Your mentor will be Ivypool. Ivypool, you are clearly ready to take on an apprentice. You have received excellent training from Cinderheart, and have shown yourself to be courageous and loyal. You will be mentor to Maskpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to him."

Maskpaw went over to Ivypool, more hopping than walking. He touched noses with her, and sped off to go and bounce around in the apprentice's den.

Finally, Bramblestar turned to Flashkit. "Flashkit," he said, "From this day on until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Flashpaw."

_"I wonder who my mentor will be!"_ thought Flashkit, _"I hope it's someone cool, like Graystripe or Lionblaze!"_

Bramblestar, lacking the ability to read minds, continued "Your mentor will be Dovewing. Dovewing, you are more than ready to take on an apprentice. You received top-notch training from Lionblaze, and have shown great enterprise and intelligence. You will be mentor to Flashpaw, and I expect you to pass on all you know to him."

Touching noses with his mentor, Flashpaw thought to himself _"Well, Dovewing may not be quite as awesome as Lionblaze or Graystripe, but at least she was trained by one of them! And at least I didn't get that arrogant furball Berrynose."_

**Me: This chapter's a little short, and I was reluctant to post it. But like I said, Pikmin took over my brain!**

**Olimar: Well, it wasn't ****_my_**** idea!**

**Me: Shut up, you're not in this story. Oh, and if you want, ask the characters STUFF! No, really! I don't know if you want to, but if you do, please do! You're mind exploded, didn't it.**

**Olimar: No, their brain still seems to be intact.**

**Kuma: GET OUTTA HERE BEFORE I ROAST YOUR BUTT!**


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